Danger and Devotion
by marinawings
Summary: Not long after the fall of Insomnia, Noctis drags his friends along on a fishing trip that swiftly becomes dangerous. The four friends fight to find and protect each other after being separated by a cave-in and attacked by monsters. Ignis is primary, but all four chocobros get to shine... and get whumped in the process.
1. Chapter 1

**My first FFXV fic! A few notes: this takes place not long after the fall of Insomnia; summoning potions is too convenient, so I've removed that option to give the boys more of a challenge; no romantic pairings-just bromance; no one makes it out unscathed, everyone is scathed; this was supposed to be one chapter and suddenly became sentient and self aware, so 60 pages later...; no beta reader, so any and all mistakes... mea culpa!**

**Most importantly... It is finished! You don't have to worry about getting into it only to see it fall to the wayside abandoned. **

**Enjoy!**

CHAPTER ONE

**Ignis**

Sunlight sparkled on the rushing waters of the Wennath River, but Ignis heard the rumble of thunder in the distance and felt a touch of unease.

"Looks like we'll bet getting some rather stormy weather soon, Noct," he told the young royal. "We might want to wrap things up here."

"One more fish! Just one more!" Noctis protested, throwing his friends a grin over his shoulder.

It was nice to see the Lucian heir so relaxed. He had been withdrawn and angry after the fall of Insomnia… with good reason. Days like this-beautiful and relaxing-did not seem as frequent anymore, and Ignis cherished them. He stood leaning against a boulder by the river, watching Noct fish, listening to Prompto laugh and chatter as he played King's Knight, glancing occasionally at Gladio, who was doing push-ups against another boulder nearby.

There was a splash from the river and an exclamation of delight from Noctis.

"Looks like we got a big one," Gladio commented, pushing off the rock and moving closer to Noctis.

"Uh-huh!" Noctis groaned, his fishing rod straining with the weight of the beast on the end of the line. He was struggling.

"Turn the rod towards the fish!" Ignis advised.

"Got it!" Noctis and the rod swayed this way and that, and something bright and shiny leaped out of the river.

"Whoa! Look at that!" cried Prompto, who, mere minutes before, had complained about how long Noct had been fishing.

It _had _been a while. And a glance at the sky told Ignis the storm would arrive in minutes.

Noctis finally managed to reel in the beast-a long, sleek salmon that he had to drag onto the dock with both hands.

"Mmm. Looks tasty!" Gladio commented.

Ignis smiled a bit. "It will make a nice supper." He spared another glance at the sky. "About ready to make our way back to the haven, Noct?"

"Hmm… I guess so." The raven-haired royal sounded like a kid whose mother had just ordered him home from the playground, and Ignis felt a twinge of guilt… but that guilt was assuaged when thunder crackled violently overhead.

Gladio hurried to help Noctis bag up the fish he'd caught-four in all, all fine specimens for cooking-and Ignis looked around for Prompto, alerted to the little blond fellow's absence by his sudden silence.

"Prompto?" Ignis called. "We're heading back to camp!"

Nothing.

"Prompto!" Ignis called again, louder this time.

A wail sounded from the bushes, and Ignis's daggers were in his hands lightning fast. He took a fighting stance as Prompto came running from the woods, spinning to fire behind him with his revolver.

"Prompto, what is it?" Gladio yelled, coming up beside Ignis, greatsword at the ready.

"Bugs!" Prompto screeched, firing again. "Big ones!"

And sure enough, three massive wasps burst from the trees, whipping their stingers before them, stabbing and slashing at Prompto.

"Prompto, duck!" Noctis called, and Ignis immediately knew what his charge was planning.

Of course, Noctis completely ignored his warning shout, and as soon as Prompto ducked, Noctis warped over the blond boy's head, slashing one of the wasps out of the sky. It was down, but it wasn't out; it staggered on the ground, buzzing angrily as its fellows swooped at Noctis and Prompto.

Ignis and Gladio moved into the fight, Gladio swinging powerfully at the closest wasp, while Ignis leaped gracefully to Noctis's side, attacking the vulnerable wasp from behind with a coordinated attack he and the younger man had practiced time and again.

"Thanks, Iggy!"

"Of course."

The first wasp shattered under their attack, and Gladio swiftly chopped the second from the air, while Prompto shot down the third.

"Is that all of them?" Prompto wondered, his voice trembling slightly.

Ignis turned to face him and watched in horror as Prompto's question was answered: a fourth wasp, larger than the others, swooped down from the trees before he could shout a warning, jabbing its stinger into Prompto's back. Prompto yelped and staggered to his knees.

"Noct!" Ignis yelled, sliding across the ground to Prompto's side and catching the boy before he could collapse entirely.

This time, Noctis took his adviser's warning to heart, dodging the giant wasp's attack and countering, knocking it back, warping away to safety, then warping into battle again, staggering the wasp with a hard thrust. Gladio barrelled to Noct's side, sweeping his sword upward and slicing the wasp cleanly in two.

"What's going on? I can't-" Prompto shuddered violently in Ignis's grasp, bringing his hands to his head.

"Prompto, can you hear me?" Ignis asked, keeping his voice as calm as he could.

"What? Who are you? I don't…" Prompto lurched out of Ignis's arms and staggered to his feet.

"It seems Prompto's a bit confused," Ignis warned the others, standing. He held out a warning hand. "You might want to stay back."

"Prompto-" Noctis said, starting forward.

"Stay back," Ignis repeated, grabbing onto the royal's shoulder. "The wasp's toxin is causing him to hallucinate."

"Do we have a remedy for this?" Gladio wondered, frowning at the sight of Prompto staggering and shivering his way toward the river.

"Back at camp," Ignis confirmed.

"What's going on?" Prompto cried, slumping against a boulder as lightning streaked overhead. "I can't-I can't think-I can't-"

"Prompto, stay where you are!" Ignis shouted, his mind filled with a sudden terrible image of Prompto blundering into the river.

"You don't tell me what to do! Who are you, anyway?" Wild-eyed, Prompto spun on his friends, aiming his revolver at each one in turn.

"You don't want to do that," Gladio growled. "It's _us, _Prompto."

"How far is it to the haven?" Noctis asked quietly. "Maybe I can warp there and get the remedy before he-"

BANG!

Ignis and Gladio dragged Noctis to the ground between them, and Prompto's bullet went wild, his hands shaking.

"Why do you keep-I can't-" Prompto dropped to his hands and knees, shaking his head.

While Ignis kept an arm across Noctis's back, Gladio hurtled himself across the distance between himself and Prompto, grabbing the smaller man's arm and twisting the gun from his fingers. Prompto struggled weakly, but Gladio was strong.

"Easy, pal," Gladio rumbled. "Don't wanna hurt ya. I'm your friend, remember?"

Wide-eyed, Prompto shook his head, but ceased his struggling.

Ignis got to his feet and helped Noctis up. "We should get back to camp before-"

The sky opened up, and rain poured down over the river valley.

"-the storm hits."

A flash of lightning and a rumble of thunder underscored his words.

"I've got him. You two get going," Gladio ordered, lifting Prompto bodily off the ground and slinging the slighter man over his shoulder.

A bolt of lightning tore through the air and sparked off a rock not a dozen yards from where Ignis stood.

"That was close," he murmured.

"The haven's too far!" Noctis yelled over the cacophony of the storm. "There's a cave back there." He pointed toward a tall line of rocks and boulders. "We might have to shelter there until the storm passes!"

"Alright…" Gladio sounded dubious, burdened as he was with a struggling, frightened, confused Prompto.

Noctis led the way to the cave by the river, and the four men hunkered inside, dripping wet. Lightning scorched the ground just a few feet from the opening of the cave.

Ignis motioned to Gladio. "Let me see his back."

Gladio nodded and gently settled Prompto on stone floor between them. "Easy now, Prompto. We're trying to help."

Prompto whimpered and closed his eyes. Ignis could not begin to imagine what the poor fellow believed was happening to him.

"It's alright," he said soothingly as he and Gladio slid Prompto's jacket down over his arms. "I'm a friend. I'm helping you."

"Ig-Ignis?" Prompto squeaked out.

Ignis closed his eyes with a sigh of relief. "It's me, Prompto. Lie still. We need to look at your back."

"Noctis?" Prompto called.

"I'm here, buddy." Noctis knelt beside his friend and patted his hand. "We're all here."

"Oh, good," Prompto sighed. "I thought it was just me, surrounded by bugs the size of humans. Ugh." He shuddered.

The wound on his back did not look too serious, and between Gladio's canteen of water and Ignis's clean handkerchief, they were able to do a rudimentary cleaning of it before easing Prompto back into his shirt and jacket and helping him sit up.

"Whoa. My head still feels weird, and my back hurts." He frowned and leaned one shoulder against the cave wall.

"Rest for a while," Ignis recommended. "When we get back to camp, I'll make one of your favorite dishes for dinner."

Prompto cocked a blond eyebrow and grinned. "You promise?"

"I promise." Ignis patted his shoulder and smiled back. He settled rather uncomfortably against the cave wall himself. "What I wouldn't give for a nice cup of Ebony…"

"Or a cup of noodles," Gladio groaned.

"Or a nice, soft bed," Noctis added to the list of general complaints. He flipped on the flashlight on his jacket and aimed it around the cave. "I wonder how far this place goes back?"

"Not sure," Ignis said, "but from the echo of thunder and our voices, I'd say the tunnel system here is quite extensive."

"Wanna explore it?" Noctis asked, standing and brushing dirt and dust off his hands.

"Sure." Gladio stood beside him. "At least it'll give us something to do." He scowled at the opening of the cave, through which they could all see and hear hail falling now with the rain.

"Do you feel up to it, Prompto?" Ignis asked.

"Yeah, I guess so. Can't let Noct have all the fun without me." He managed a tired grin. "And plus, some fresh cave air might clear my head a little."

"If you're sure." Ignis stood and helped Prompto to his feet, then turned to Noctis. "Lead on, Noct."

Noctis nodded to him and led them down the center tunnel that descended into the earth by the river. Their lights bounced off rough stone walls, stalactites, and stalagmites. Somewhere in the cave, water trickled and ran gently, apart from the rough roar of rain above their heads. As they went on, the flicker of lightning behind them grew dimmer, and the crackle and rumble of thunder grew softer.

"Looks like a pretty boring and non-terrifying cave so far," Prompto commented, looking a little less pale than he had appeared earlier.

"Yeah, but it goes on forever," Noctis replied. "Look at all these tunnels. I don't see an end to any of them."

"We'd best be careful not to lose our way," Ignis advised. He grasped one of his daggers and cut a mark into the cave wall. "It would be most unfortunate for us to disappear forever into this labyrinth."

"It would be ironic if we starved to death alongside the best cook in Eos," Gladio said with a grin.

"Oh, come now." Ignis waved a dismissing hand.

"You're just being modest." Noctis elbowed him. "We really do like your cooking."

"Even Noctis does, and he's as picky as they come!" Prompto added cheerfully.

"Thank you all," Ignis replied. "I only hope this storm abates soon enough for us to return to the haven at a decent time."

As they continued along the tunnel, with Ignis marking their path with his daggers, he grew more and more uneasy. He moved closer to Noctis and spoke quietly.

"I don't see the point in us continuing on any further. There's nothing back here."

"Yeah, you're probably right." The Lucian prince sighed and turned to Prompto. "Let's head back to where we were. Maybe we can play some King's Knight while we-"

The ground beneath their feet suddenly shifted, and a grating, scraping sound echoed through the tunnel.

"Uhm, guys?" Prompto's eyes darted to the faces of his friends. "I think this cave might be terrifying after all."

A sibilant, breathy noise, like the rush of hundreds of leaves, sounded from somewhere in the darkness beyond the reach of their flashlights' beams.

"I think Specs is right. Let's head back."

Heavens, even Gladio sounded nervous.

"Yep. Let's go." Noctis spun, and his friends followed him. The four men stayed close to each other as they moved quickly back down the tunnel.

The ground beneath them shuddered and bucked. Noctis swayed and bumped into Ignis, knocking his advisor against the cave wall.

"Sorry, Iggy," Noctis muttered.

"Think nothing of it, Noct."

The ground rumbled and shook again, harder this time, and all four men were forced to grab onto the wall and each other to remain standing.

"What is happening?" Gladio growled.

"There's something beneath us," Ignis surmised. "Something alive."

The cave floor vibrated, cracks running along the rock.

"We have to stay together! Don't let it-" Ignis's cry was cut short in a gasp of shock as the floor disappeared beneath him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Ignis**

The ground had shattered into pieces, and four men were tumbling down into the caverns below their feet.

Ignis somehow managed to get control of his own body in the fall, tucking and rolling, sliding along the wall. He caught a glimpse of Prompto scrambling for purchase before disappearing down a crack in the floor. Gladio rolled out of the way of a stalactite that crashed down from the ceiling. And Noct-Where was Noct?

"Nooooct!" Ignis cried.

The shifting floor and a tumble of falling rock swept him away from the others and downward. He was slipping and sliding along with a multitude of rocks and a choking cloud of dust. He tried to hold his body upright, tried to balance as best he could. Puffs of dust blocked his vision. He had no idea how far the rock slide would go and what was at the end. He was going to fast to land anywhere safely.

Coughing through the dust, he drew his daggers, turned and stabbed them at the rockslide. The dagger in his right hand bounced off solid rock, but the dagger in his left sank into a crevice, bringing his descent to a jarring halt. Pain burst through his shoulder. He guarded his head and face as best he could as rocks continued to fall around him, some of them pummeling his arms and shoulders. It was a miracle none of them dislodged the dagger.

Finally, they stopped.

Panting, coughing, wiping dust and dirt from his eyes, he took stock of his situation. He found himself halfway down a slick stone ramp that led to a ledge overlooking a vast drop into nothing. Could the caves this close to the river really run so deep?

Arms shaking from exertion-and perhaps a little, he had to admit, from fear-he turned over on his back and braced himself against the sides of the ramp, carefully withdrawing the dagger from the crevice. He controlled his slide this time, ending up in a shaky, gasping heap at the bottom of the ramp. Sitting up on his knees, he looked back up it. His stomach sank. It was much too steep and too slick for him to climb.

He stood, forcing himself up onto weak knees, and looked around. The beam of his flashlight illuminated rock, rock, and more rock, all gray, some smooth, some rough, hazy with dust dislodged from the rock slide.

"Noct!" he called.

His voice bounced back to him, mocking his solitude.

"Gladio! Prompto!"

Oh, oh, oh, oh, came the echo.

Ignis whipped his phone out of his jacket pocket and saw that, as he had suspected, there was no cellular signal this deep under the ground. He shivered as chilly air whistled up from the gaping maw beyond the ledge. Was there any end to that darkness? He wondered what creatures must live there in the depths of the earth. Surely, something living had hissed and moved through the tunnels, disturbing the ground, breaking it, separating him from his friends.

_What now, Ignis?_

He spotted a narrow opening in the cave wall and hurried to it. He shone his light through, revealing an open room on the other side of it, perhaps twenty feet away. He squeezed into the opening and made his way carefully along it. Just before he came out on the other side, he heard a tick-tick-ticking sound that sent unpleasant chills running over his skin.

He stopped, held his breath, listened.

Tick, tick, tick. Rhythmic little taps, followed by clicks.

Bugs. He sighed. More bugs. This place must be a breeding ground for them, a nest.

Well, what was he to do besides face them? He had no other choice if he wanted to find Noct and the others.

He took a few steps forward, the beam of his flashlight bouncing into the room beyond the crack.

The ticking and clicking stopped.

Ignis stifled a curse and covered his flashlight, plunging himself into uncomfortable darkness, but hopefully disguising his presence before the insects took notice of him.

The silence lasted a few breaths longer, then the tapping noises continued. Ignis slid forward as quietly as he could, the soft rasp of his jacket against the cave wall setting his teeth on edge.

He finally stepped into the room beyond the little opening. He allowed a brief flash of light, revealing the room to be empty and small, but with archways leading from it-archways that were clearly manmade, as had been, he suspected, the ramp that had nearly broken his neck.

He tiptoed toward the archways, one hand covering his flashlight, the other reaching in front of him in the dark, ready to summon a dagger, ready to bat away any crawling thing that might chance to leap at his face. He was moving toward the insect sounds, but there was no helping that. He was resigned to a fight. He was almost looking forward to making a surprise attack, taking advantage of stealth and position. If he could find a vantage point somewhere in the room ahead, beyond the arches, he might not have to get close to the enemy. He could fling his daggers straight at their weak points and-

A flicker of light ahead halted his pace, and he took cover between the arches.

"Hello?" a familiar voice called. "Is anyone there?"

Ignis pushed his glasses up his nose and steeled himself.

"Hello?" the voice called again.

"Prompto, stay where you are!" Ignis ordered.

The clicking and ticking sounds stopped, then intensified.

"Ignis!?" Prompto's voice rose with excitement and relief. "Where are you?"

"Be still!" Ignis barked. "And get your weapons ready!" His daggers were already in his hands.

"What!?"

"Listen!" Ignis hissed.

Prompto quietened, and the noise of creeping, rustling insects grew louder.

"They're in the room between us," Ignis called to his comrade. "We'll execute a pincer attack. Aim low. I'll go high. Are you ready?"

"Ready!" came Prompto's shaky reply.

Hoping that his friend truly was, Ignis spun through the archway, leaping over the crawling thing that came darting toward him. Prompto's pistol fired, the report echoing dramatically through the cave. Ignis flipped, flinging a dagger at the insect that had attacked him, striking its underbelly and disabling it. With his other dagger, he sliced several legs off of the next creature that came at him.

"Woohoo! Die, bugs, die!" Prompto hollered, firing again and again.

Spinning, rolling, dodging, and flipping, Ignis made his way across the room and around the host of bugs to Prompto's side.

"Over there!" He grabbed Prompto's shoulder and shook it, then pointed. "Stairs! We must get to them!"

"Alright!" Prompto nodded, and the two men began fighting their way toward the stairs.

They were close, so close, within a few yards, and the insects were dying around them, when something winged and buzzing zipped into the room.

Just ahead of him, Prompto froze. "Oh no. Oh no, oh no, oh no! Not again!"

"Keep going!" Ignis shoved him on, slashing at a creature that leaped at their legs from the shadows.

Prompto had stopped firing, shaken badly by the sight of the type of creature that had wounded him so recently. "Don't let it get me!" he wailed.

Resigned, Ignis grabbed Prompto under the arm and pushed him up the stone stairs, leaving one hand free to fight the remaining insects. They were close to the top-close to the _door _at the top, a door that they could close in the face of their enemies, a door that would give them a distinct strategic advantage-when the giant wasp came swooping at them.

Ignis knew Prompto would be too afraid to fight it. The boy was scared-understandably so-eyes wide, face pale, hands shaking around the grip of his gun, so Ignis pushed Prompto behind him and stood his ground.

The wasp aimed its stinger, and Ignis slashed at it, but the wasp feinted at the last minute and spun, faster than Ignis would have thought possible. It darted down at him, grabbing hold of his arm with its mouth and legs and dragging him into the air toward the ceiling high above.

Now he was really in a quandary. The wasp swung him around dizzyingly hard and fast. If he cut its legs, it would drop him, and he would fall a good distance, a bone-cracking distance. He had to somehow get it to fly lower before he even thought about freeing himself. In fact-

The wasp released him abruptly, intending, no doubt, to send him hurtling to his death. Ignis was just fast enough to reach up and plunge his dagger into the creature's side. The wasp hissed and buzzed angrily, flying lopsided, biting at him and jabbing at him with its stinger while he twisted out of the way.

"Iggy! I got it!" Prompto cried.

Ignis turned to see Prompto aiming at the wasp with great confidence. "No! Wait!" he called hoarsely. "Wait till it flies lower!" He grunted, swinging his legs out of the way right before the wasp could sting them.

"Okay!" Prompto replied.

With his free hand and dagger, Ignis sliced at the wasp's closest wing, nicking it. The wasp shuddered and bucked, nearly dislodging him, buzzing madly. And just as he had hoped, it swooped lower to the ground, weakened.

BANG!

The wasp convulsed again, and Ignis tore his daggers loose, kicking off of the wasp's falling body and preparing to land as gently as he could from this height of at least fifteen feet.

The landing did not go as he'd planned. His foot slipped on the slick, slimy body of an insect, and he went tumbling forward. His momentum was too fast for him to correct or catch himself. All he could do was try to cushion his head, and he fell hard on his left side and arm. Pain shot through his elbow, ribs, and hip, stealing his breath for a few terrifying seconds.

"Iggy? Iggy!" Prompto's voice echoed frantically through the cave.

Ignis could not get enough breath to reply. He rolled onto his back, gasping and coughing-and as he did, a long, slender creature with what looked like hundreds of legs and sharp pincers shot out at him from the shadows-a hundlegs. He was too stunned to react with his usual speed and agility, but he managed to bring up his daggers in front of his face before the thing slammed into him.

He wrestled with it, tried to push back its pincers, but the bug was strong, and he was breathless and sore from the fight and the fall.

"Iggy, be still!" Prompto shouted.

"That's a little difficult right now!" Ignis called back, jabbing at the hundlegs' face. It dodged his strike and retaliated with one of its own, slashing at his abdomen with its sharp pincers.

Ignis yelped in pain as the pincers sliced through his skin. He arched his back and twisted, trying to throw the creature off his torso. It raised its ugly head, prepared to strike again-

-then exploded in a shower of blood and carapace.

Ignis sighed and closed his eyes. He reached up to push his glasses back up his nose only to find that they weren't there.

"Iggy!" Prompto cried, this time closer. "We have to move! More are coming!"

Ignis sat up, wincing at the aches in his side, elbow, and shoulders and at the sharper pain spreading across his stomach. He pressed his battered arm there, hoping that might ease the pain. It did… a little.

"Come on, Specs! We gotta move!" Prompto was suddenly beside him, a flurry of sound and motion, grabbing his shoulder, shaking him until he gasped with pain, then apologizing.

"My spectacles," Ignis muttered, swaying to his feet, dizzy and nauseated.

"Here!" Prompto snatched them from the ground and pushed them onto Ignis's face. "We gotta go now!"

He was right, Ignis thought, the tactical part of his mind somehow still working through the pain and shock. He could hear an approaching rush of ticking and clicking and buzzing.

Prompto grabbed the collar of his jacket and hauled him forward and through the carpet of dead bugs and up the stone stairs.

"Please don't be locked. Please don't be locked," the shorter man muttered, twisting the handle of the door.

The door swung open. Prompto whooped with triumph and shoved Ignis through, scooting in behind him and shutting the door.

Their flashlights revealed that they were in a long, narrow room, almost like a hall. It was packed with shelves and boxes and bags.

Ignis felt his strength failing; he wrestled with the temptation to collapse beneath the pain and weariness. He gave himself a harsh mental shake and gathered control of his weakening faculties.

"Have you seen Noct?" he asked, his voice annoyingly hoarse and breathless, grating on his own nerves. "Have you seen Noct or Gladio?"

Prompto shook his head forlornly. "No. I was hoping they were with you." He kept his grip on Ignis's jacket, looking the other man up and down. "You don't look so good, Iggy." He winced. "It's my fault. I-"

Ignis held up a hand. "No apologies. This whole evening has been one terrible accident."

Prompto chuckled. "You can say that again. But seriously, dude. You're bleeding. Maybe we should rest."

Ignis thought about that, calculated time and chance as best he could. He shook his head. "We have to get to them, have to find Noct." Twinges of pain. Shortness of breath. He pressed his arm harder against his stomach. "Our only way out of this mess is together."

"Okay… I guess." Prompto gave Ignis a dubious once over. "I hope Noct and Gladdy are in better shape than we are, wherever they are."

**Gladio**

It was a bad dream. It had to be. Falling down on rocks, with rocks falling down on him. Rolling, tumbling, sliding until his head bashed against something, then this weird dream about water and smoke.

No… Maybe not a dream, Gladio realized with growing clarity. He could _smell _water-fishy and cold-and he didn't usually smell things in his dreams… except for maybe a nice, hearty dinner cooking. He could hear it, too, babbling through the ringing in his ears, through the haze of his unconsciousness.

He was waking up. And he didn't think he'd like what he saw when he awoke.

He opened his eyes. They ached. His whole head ached. He pushed himself up to his hands and knees, waiting while his head stopped spinning. For a moment, he didn't think it would ever stop, but it finally did, and he stood, grunting and groaning at the pain shooting through his skull.

He had been right: He didn't like what he saw… or, more accurately, he didn't like what he _didn't _see-Noct, Ignis, or Prompto. He had tried to get to Noct when the tunnel went to pieces. He had rolled towards him, but by the time he got there, Noct had warped away to gods knew where. He hoped somewhere safe.

He thought Prompto had fallen into a crack somewhere further down the path. And Iggy almost hadn't fallen at all, his agility very nearly getting him to safety before he went tumbling down some opening in the rock.

"Nooooct!" Gladio called at the top of his lungs… then immediately regretted it as pain seemed to split his skull, bile rising in his throat. He swallowed it down, took another deep breath and called again, pressing a hand to his forehead, where he felt a bulging lump.

Concussion? Maybe. That would explain the nausea and the way the cave kept spinning.

At first, he thought the floor to his right was still spinning, then he realized that it was the source of the water sounds and smells. It was a river, running past the rocky ground where he stood. Made sense. The caves were right up against the Wennath… which meant, if he followed the river, he'd surely find a way out of the cave. Rivers didn't stay underground forever. They always ran somewhere, eventually to the sea.

Gladio rubbed his sore head, careful of the goose egg on his forehead. He had a plan now-not as detailed as some of Specs' master strategies, but at least he had an end game now. He was going to find his friends and lead them out by way of the river.

**Noctis**

Warping had been a bad idea, and Noctis knew it. He tended to rely too heavily on that ability of his. Ignis was always warning him about it, telling him not to use his skill recklessly in battle, urging him to _think. _

When the cave had started collapsing around them, Noctis hadn't had time to think. His first instinct was to warp-to warp to the nearest friend in danger. In this case, it had been Prompto. He had tried to warp toward Prompto, who had been sliding down a gaping crack in the floor. But he hadn't been strong enough. He'd forgotten how much he'd used his ability earlier, and he hadn't made it to Prompto. He'd been swallowed up himself, sucked into a dark tunnel by some unseen force, something that stalked him now in the shadows, hissing and rumbling and _slithering. _

It was gaining on him, whatever it was. He thought maybe it was big enough to have trouble navigating the narrow tunnels of the cave system, but he wasn't moving very fast. His right ankle hurt with every step, and he was exhausted, used up by his pathetic attempt to warp to Prompto's aid. He hoped Prompto was okay. How far down had the little guy fallen? And what about Ignis and Gladio? Ignis had shouted for him, and Gladio had moved toward him… and then what? Had the monster under the floor devoured them? Had they fallen to their deaths? Surely not. Surely…

"Ow!" He gasped at the sharpness and heat of the pain in his ankle, leaning against the wall, resting his forehead against the cool stone. He swore softly.

Why did everything have to go so wrong? Why couldn't he be enjoying the open road with his closest friends, looking forward to his wedding to Luna? The Empire. That was why. All his hopes and dreams had fallen with Insomnia, buried in the rubble, buried with his father…

Noctis clenched his teeth against a cry of anger and pain.

"Sssssssssst. Sssssssssst."

With the sound came a puff of hot, musty air from behind him. It smelled coppery, metallic, like blood and death.

With a grunt of rage and frustration, Noctis pushed off the wall and hurried on his way, alone in the dark, limping and gritting his teeth.

**Prompto**

The narrow hallway was cold. Prompto shivered and rubbed his bare arms. His breath fogged the air in front of his face.

"Need to borrow my jacket?" Ignis wondered, sounding as tired as Prompto felt.

"Nah, you hang onto it, Specs." Prompto felt terrible about freezing up when they were fighting the wasp. If he hadn't, maybe he could have shot it before it took off into the air with Iggy.

"Nonsense. I'm wearing longer sleeves." Ignis stopped walking and started to shrug out of his jacket. He went still and stiff all of a sudden, his face paling.

"You okay, Iggy?" Prompto asked, almost dreading the answer.

"Fine. Just a little sore from battle."

That might be a lie, Prompto thought.

"Hey, Iggy, you don't have to-"

"Here you are." Ignis slipped the jacket from his own shoulders and handed it to Prompto.

"Iggy-"

"I insist. You must be freezing."

"How about we take turns?" Prompto suggested.

"That sounds like an excellent plan," Iggy said with a little smile.

"I have 'em sometimes." Prompto slipped into the jacket. It was warm-too long and one of the sleeves was wet, but definitely nice and warm. "Thanks, man."

"Don't mention it." Ignis let out a slow breath, still holding his body stiffly, one arm pressed against his middle. "Shall we continue?"

"Yep! I'll take point." It was the least he could do for this guy, this loyal and helpful friend who had protected him and taken care of him all day. "Follow my lead!" Feeling several degrees warmer already, he advanced down the hall, pistol at the ready. He stepped around a stack of empty crates, maneuvered over a pile of sacks.

"I believe these once contained Hulldagh nutmeg," Ignis remarked as he slid carefully over the same pile. "Most of it is faded away and gone by now, probably eaten by mice and insects. Can you smell the remains of it in the air?"

"Maybe." Now that Iggy mentioned it, there _was _a nicer smell to this part of the cave, a warm, spicy scent. "It's kinda nice."

"That it is. It's an excellent ingredient for cooking."

Prompto glanced back at Ignis, a tad concerned. It wasn't like Iggy to ramble. But Ignis was right behind him, shoulders straight, a placid look on his face, looking as okay as one _could _look after tangling with giant bugs.

They continued down the hallway, looking for any sign of Noctis or Gladio. Prompto made up his mind that they _would _find their friends. There was no other option. They would find each other, share icky bug battle stories, then get the heck out of the cave for good. He didn't care if they had to go back out in the rain; he just wanted out of this place. The ceiling was starting to weigh on him, as if the whole weight of Eos were poised above him, ready to fall down and smash him at any second.

"Prompto, do you hear that?" Ignis asked suddenly, grabbing his arm.

Prompto stopped and was still. His ears perked up. "Is that… water?"

"I think it is." Ignis nodded and rubbed his chin. "Some branch of the Wennath must run through here. If we find it, we can follow it out… after we've found the others, of course."

"Right on!" Prompto threw a fist in the air in celebration. "Let's go!" He hurried forward, and Iggy followed close behind him.

**Gladio**

The goblins were no trouble. There were only three of them, and they were small and weak, but after fighting them, Gladio felt almost as dizzy and sick as he had when he'd first awakened by the water. He staggered to the rushing stream, dipped his hands in it, and splashed some water on his face, which felt really refreshing and eased his headache somewhat. He cupped some water in his hands and drank it.

He straightened and continued on, following the water, looking around for entrances and exits to the tunnel through which the water flowed. He'd figured out that the tunnel was man-made. Some of the openings further up the walls had stairs leading up to them, but so far, he hadn't found any stairs that were still intact, so he hadn't been able to explore anything other than the tunnel with the stream running through it.

Something moved and splashed in the water, and Gladio turned toward it, sweeping out his sword. He sighed and shook his head when he saw what had spooked him-a trout jumping in the stream. He put away his sword and continued on for several yards uneventfully.

Then, he heard a voice, a familiar one, a familiar laugh, sharp and young.

"Prompto!" Gladio called, not caring what monsters he might disturb with his shouts. He could take on anything right now if he could only get to his friends. "Prompto!"

"Gladdy? Gladiooooo!"

Prompto's voice came from an opening in the wall about ten feet from the ground. Gladio ran to it and stood under it.

"Over here!" he shouted.

He had never been so happy to see a blond head as he was to see Prompto's when it emerged from the dark of the other tunnel.

"Hey, Gladdy!" Prompto waved cheerfully.

"You have no idea how glad I am to see you!"

"I think I might!"

"Is Noct with you?" Ignis emerged from the tunnel, as well, one arm cradled to his stomach.

Gladio shook his head. "No. Haven't seen him."

Ignis sighed and ran a hand down his face. "We can't leave here without him."

"I know. Don't worry. We'll find him. Now that the three of us are together, we'll find him." Gladio motioned to his friends, barely able to contain his excitement and growing confidence. "Come on. I've been following the water. It should lead us out, and I'm sure we'll find Noct along the way."

Prompto scampered down the broken stairs, and Ignis followed him, moving more carefully, almost gingerly. Gladio narrowed his eyes on the strategist. He noticed that Ignis wasn't wearing his jacket; Prompto was. And Prompto was leading the way. Prompto looked much better than he had before they'd gotten separated… and Ignis looked worse.

As Prompto skipped ahead along the tunnel, following the water, snapping a picture of gods-knew-what, Gladio moved closer to Ignis. "You okay, Iggy?"

"Could be worse," Ignis told him with a tight smile. "Had a little tussle with some insects."

"Your arm-"

"Will last me long enough to find Noct, I hope." He covered his bloody elbow with a gloved hand.

"You're not cold?"

"Not as cold as Prompto was." Ignis looked ahead stoically. "Not as cold as _you_ look. If I had a second jacket, I would insist that you borrow it."

Gladio chuckled. "Glad to know you've always got our backs."

Ignis nodded to him and moved ahead after Prompto. Gladio stayed close. He had a feeling Ignis might need him.


	3. Chapter 3

**Noctis**

Noctis shivered, alone in the dark. As he proceeded down the tunnel in which he had found himself, he felt the air grow colder and damper. Gladio was always teasing him about his jacket, but he was glad now that he'd worn it today. He wondered where Prompto was and hoped his friend was somewhere warmer, since he always went around sleeveless. Gladio probably didn't care; he was tougher than a little chilly air. And Ignis had his jacket.

Even a tent would be nice right now, Noctis reflected as he stumbled along. The pain in his ankle was traveling up his leg now, in aggravating little bursts. He thought it was just a bad sprain, but if he kept walking on it, it could get worse. What choice did he have, though? There was still something behind him, stalking him, breathing, hissing, moving.

On occasion, the ground shuddered, and Noctis tensed, half expecting the cave to fall apart around him. He stayed close to the wall, as if that might help, although the wall had turned suddenly smooth, with no handholds.

It was strange, this sudden smoothness, and he aimed his flashlight further up the wall to see carvings twenty feet off the floor, patterns and marks that were clearly put there by human hands. Had someone lived in this cave? Or been buried in it?

Noctis shivered again. He stopped walking for a moment. He had to. He couldn't take another step. He leaned, panting and clammy, against the wall, taking all the weight off his right leg and laughing hysterically at his sudden freedom from pain. His laughter bounced off the walls, and he clamped a hand over his mouth to keep himself from making any more noise.

But all was not silent.

There was a rumbling and hissing from behind him… further back than before, but still there.

And ahead of him, he thought he heard the sound of water.

Gladio had taught him about following rivers and streams. He knew that much about survival in the wilderness, thanks to his shield.

Noctis gathered his courage, steeled himself, and stepped forward, locking a cry of agony behind his teeth, dragging himself along the wall toward the water, and hopefully, toward his friends.

**Ignis**

They stopped to rest after what seemed like hours of walking and probably wasn't. Ignis checked the wound on Gladio's head-a large, bruised bump-and checked his pupils, which seemed fine. Perhaps he had a concussion, but it was a minor one. Prompto was tired and cold and hungry, still shaky from his encounter with the above-ground wasps.

As Gladio drank from the stream and Prompto sat with his eyes closed, Ignis slid down against a large stalagmite and reached into his pocket for his last clean handkerchief. He slid it surreptitiously through the tear in his shirt and pressed it to the gash across his stomach, clenching his teeth against the pain. The wound wasn't terribly deep, but it bled rather copiously. His shirt was sticky with blood.

"You okay, Iggy?" Prompto called, sounding frightfully weary.

"Just resting," Ignis called back. He felt along his elbow. _That_ bleeding had stopped, thank goodness, and there seemed to be no further damage to the arm. His shoulder and ribs on the left side were bruised quite badly, but not seriously injured. But the cut… That would need a potion-or two-to stop the bleeding, and he'd probably still wind up with a scar.

And it hurt, and he was exhausted, but he couldn't sleep, couldn't stop. Prompto and Gladio might need him. _Noctis _needed him, wherever his royal highness might be.

_Let him be safe. Please let him be safe. _

After a few brief moments of rest, Prompto grew bored and started splashing water at Gladio, who splashed back harder, leading to a water fight. Ignis staggered up to remind his friends that they were dignified members of the Crownsguard and earned himself a good splashing which utterly ruined his hair, beaded his glasses with water, and felt deliciously refreshing-until a chilly breeze wafted through the tunnel.

"Gentlemen, would you prefer to die of pneumonia here or perhaps back at camp having enjoyed a nice warm meal?" Ignis asked, wiping his glasses on the sleeve of his none-too-clean shirt.

"Good point," Gladio grunted, crossing his arms. "Guess it's time to move on."

"I'll lead the way!" Prompto volunteered, and they were off again.

Ignis forced himself to keep up with Prompto and Gladio, but it was difficult. Blood loss steadily drained his strength, and his knees felt weak. Falling behind was not an option, however, so he pushed himself forward. He motivated himself with thoughts of happier times on the road with Noct, Prompto, and Gladio. He thought about finding and cooking a dish Noctis actually liked. He remembered Prompto proudly showing him his favorite photographs of their journey. He considered a conversation he'd had with Gladio about a book they'd both read.

"Iggy."

Gladio's voice snapped him out of his reverie.

"Stop." Gladio had stopped walking. He turned and pushed Ignis back.

The force of the push shoved Ignis's arm hard into his stomach, and the strategist failed in a desperate attempt to hide a flinch and a groan.

Gladio frowned. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing," Ignis managed through clenched teeth. "Why are we stopping?"

"Prompto heard something up ahead. Looks like the tunnel opens up into some sort of chamber. He's scouting it out now." The shield continued to frown. "How bad are you hurt, man?"

"Badly enough," Ignis admitted. He shifted his arm against his midriff, a pained breath hissing between his teeth. "Nothing deadly if tended properly, which can't be done in the here and now, but since we're going to find our way out, it doesn't matter."

"It does matter. You're hurting." Concern and frustration mingled on Gladio's face. "You should have told us."

"Prompto's already scared," Ignis said quietly. "He's had a rather trying day."

"And me?" Gladio's eyes narrowed.

"I didn't want to burden you." Ignis winced and glanced down at himself. He was a mess. There was little chance of hiding all the blood now. "Perhaps we should seek shelter in a hotel tonight. I'd like a nice warm bath and a clean shirt."

"How deep is it?"

Ignis shook his head. "Not very. Bloody, though."

"I can see that." Gladio worked his jaw. "Anything else you're hiding?"

"A few bruises perhaps. Nothing serious."

Gladio sighed. "Try not to die on me."

Ignis smiled crookedly. "I'll do my best."

"Noct!" Prompto's happy shout came echoing back down the tunnel.

Ignis and Gladio shared a quick expression of delight before hurrying ahead, Ignis ignoring his wounds. If they'd truly found Noctis, everything would be alright. They would all be together again, and they'd find their way out and make it back to camp in tolerable condition.

The tunnel opened up into a vast chamber, clearly manmade, ringed in stone staircases, ornate pillars, and archways high and low. The river branch flowed right through the middle of it, filling a deep, circular pool before rushing out through another dark archway.

Prompto stood near the middle of the room, by the pool, pointing excitedly. Ignis followed the beam of Prompto's light and the direction of his pointing to see Noctis standing halfway up to the high ceiling, on the edge of a stone balcony.

"Noct!" Gladio hollered, and Ignis waved to their charge, nearly collapsing with relief.

Noct waved back and started down the stairs that descended from his balcony. He was limping, and Ignis winced in sympathy at each halting step.

"We have to move!" Noctis called. "There's something coming-something big! Get moving! Go!"

"What!?" Prompto yelled back.

"Follow the river! Go! Now!" Noctis hollered, stumbling down the last few steps.

Above him, the archway exploded as something huge burst into the chamber. The balcony began to collapse between its massive weight.

Noctis staggered to his hands and knees, dodging falling chunks of stone.

Ignis rushed forward instinctively, with Gladio right beside him. They raced past Prompto as the blond took a stance and fired at the creature that had barrelled its way into the room.

It was some sort of reptile, long and thin, similar to a midgardsormr in size and general build, except with legs-six of them, all ending in sharp claws. Its tongue flickered down, toward Noctis.

"Nooooct!" Ignis bellowed.

Noctis scrambled forward, rolling out of the way of the long, red tongue.

Ignis and Gladio reached him, flanked him. Ignis reached down to touch the prince's shoulder as Gladio swung his sword at the monster's tongue.

The creature hissed in anger, lurching back, then shrieking in pain as one of Prompto's bullets struck its side. Its baleful eyes glowed blue, and it reared back its head.

"Prompto! Look out!" Ignis shouted.

Prompto jumped out of the way just as the creature expelled jagged spears of ice from its mouth. The ice spears shattered against the wall on the far side of the cavern with an ear-splitting clamor.

"That one's new," Gladio muttered, taking a defensive stance in front of Noctis and Ignis.

Noctis struggled to his feet, leveraging himself up with Ignis's arm. "I can't-I can't warp," he panted apologetically. "I'm sorry. I'm too worn out. If I could rest a little-"

"We'll give you time," Ignis assured him. He raised his voice. "We need to regroup!"

The four men gathered together in the middle of the chamber, by the pool, as the ice-spitting lizard creature slithered down the wall.

"Do you think that thing caused the earthquake?" Prompto wondered.

"Possibly." Ignis narrowed his eyes on the enemy. "If it's that powerful, we need to end this fast."

"I'll handle it," Gladio declared, shouldering his sword and stepping forward.

"Wait!" Ignis grabbed the larger man's shoulder. "I have a plan!"

"Better be quick," Gladio muttered.

The creature was tasting the air, head thrown back, blue eyes glowing. It tilted its head toward them and started to move, creeping low along the ground.

"Gladio, attack it head on," Ignis ordered.

"I like this plan." Gladio grinned.

"Prompto, before it can strike him, see if you can take out its eyes. Find high ground where it can't reach you with its teeth or claws, and watch for its projectiles," Ignis continued quickly.

"Alright!" Prompto saluted.

"What about us?" Noctis asked, standing straighter.

"I'll give you time to recharge your batteries," Ignis told him. "I'll get around behind it and hit it with my daggers. Perhaps I can stun it or find a weak spot. While we're battering it from three sides, find a vantage point and warp strike as soon as you've recovered your strength."

"Got it." Noctis nodded.

"We'd better move. Now!" Gladio shouted.

The monster shot forward at the four men, and three of them scattered-Prompto toward the nearest stairway, Noctis toward the back of the room, and Ignis toward the water to his left. Gladio stood his ground and blocked a blow from the creature's tongue.

"Prompto, hurry!" the big man yelled, dodging a bite from the monster and slicing at its front legs.

"I'm movin'!" Prompto called in reply. He darted up the stairs, dropped to one knee, aimed, and fired.

The monster howled and thrashed, shrinking back, its left eye a bloody mess.

"Good shot!" Noctis called from somewhere behind Ignis.

The advisor could see that the creature's thrashing would cause problems. It whipped its tail up and down, and when the long, powerful appendage struck the floor, cracks appeared and bits of stone and tile went flying. He thought that answered Prompto's question about the cause of the earthquake. The thing must have been burrowing into the old ruins just beneath them, destroying the floor and scattering them throughout the lower tunnels.

Gladio struck again at the creature's face, turning its attention toward him, away from Ignis, and Ignis took advantage, hurrying around and behind the monster. He dodged its swatting tail, waited until it was fully preoccupied with Gladio, then slung his daggers-one toward the back of its head, one toward the base of one of its legs.

The creature shrieked, hissed, and stumbled. Gladio pressed the advantage, slicing a chunk of scaly flesh out of the side of its neck. Prompto fired again, raking a bloody line along the monster's middle shoulders, and Ignis struck again with his daggers, wounding two more legs.

The monster wailed, and the horrible sound echoed through the cavern, shaking the ground. Ignis groaned and clasped his hands to his head. He could see Gladio and Prompto doing the same thing. Noctis… Where was Noctis?

Gladio dropped to one knee, holding his head in his hands.

"Gladio, get back!" Ignis shouted.

"Ugh, my head!" Gladio moaned.

Ignis leaped over the creature's swishing tail, lunged toward Gladio, but he knew he wouldn't make it in time. The lizard's jaw was opened wide, its mouth descending toward the kneeling man-

There was a flash of pale blue light, and Noctis was there, standing between Gladio and the monster, his sword thrust through the creature's neck. The monster gasped and gurgled, convulsing as it backed away from its enemies, blood bubbling from the hole in its neck.

"Woohoo! Go, Noct!" Prompto whooped, hurrying down the stairs.

Noctis heaved a weary sigh and leaned forward, one hand on his knee, the other reaching to pat Gladio's shoulder.

"Finish it, Iggy," he ordered breathlessly.

"It will be my pleasure." Ignis moved between his friends and the creature, daggers at the ready.

"Look out!" Prompto cried.

The monster's remaining eye glowed bright blue. Gurgling, hissing, moaning, it reared back its head. Ignis reached back, pressing a restraining hand against Noct's chest, holding his ground.

Prompto ran toward the enemy, firing. One bullet went wide, the other sliced the creature's flicking tongue clean in two.

But the eye was still glowing, the mouth opening.

"We have to move!" Gladio shouted, staggering to his feet, grabbing the back of Noct's jacket.

Sharp points of ice glistened in the creature's gaping maw.

Gladio moved first, somehow, dizzy though he must be, dragging Noct with him toward the water, yelling, "Iggy! Move!"

Ice spears flew toward him, and Iggy leaped out of the way, leapt backward in a move that was usually easy for him, second nature. This time, he felt as if his body would tear in two, the gash on his stomach exploding with fresh agony, his ribs aching. He landed smoothly, however, which took almost every bit of energy he had left. His knees buckled.

A hand caught his elbow and steadied him, kept him on his feet.

"Thank you, Prompto."

"Don't mention it!" The little sharpshooter moved in front of him, firing into the monster's face.

The creature opened its mouth just as the bullets struck, shattering one of its fangs and one of the ice spears that shot from its throat.

Ignis and Prompto grabbed each other's arms, each intending to shove the other man out of danger. They dropped to the ground together, and the ice spears flew over them- so close, Ignis felt chilled.

Prompto scrambled to his feet and reached to help Ignis. Even with help, Ignis struggled, swaying, pressing a hand to his stomach, feeling blood leak between his fingers. He looked to see Gladio and Noctis engaging the beast with their swords. Though wounded mortally, the creature fought hard, spewing blood, slashing with its mighty tail, coughing up bloody spears of ice.

"Stay down," Prompto urged. "I'll go help them."

Ignis swallowed hard, shook his head. "No. We'll do this together."

Prompto took off running toward the creature, firing his revolver, and Ignis followed, slower, unsteady.

Noctis warped again, a streak of blue fire striking the monster's side and knocking it off its feet and onto its back.

Gladio attacked in a mighty leap, swinging his sword down at the creature's already damaged neck.

Prompto fired into the lizard's belly as it clawed at the air.

Ignis slung his daggers, relieving the beast of its remaining eye.

Noct dealt the final blow, driving his sword down into the creature's skull. The beast shuddered violently, throwing Noctis to the ground. Gladio rushed forward and grabbed the prince by the back of his jacket, dragging him back from the dying monster. Even as it was dying, the creature was not ready to let them go. In its death throes, it rolled with surprising speed toward the four men, the floor vibrating and splitting beneath the pounding of its tail.

Gladio staggered backward, trying to drag Noctis, who had lost his footing when a crack opened up in the floor right under his feet. Prompto and Ignis rushed forward to help.

They were safe, Ignis thought as Prompto and Gladio dragged Noctis away from the lizard monster. He moved between the others and their enemy, just as a precaution. They were finally safe, after all. The horrid beast's death throes were slowing. Its blood was everywhere, all over the floor, dripping into the water. They were safe.

Then the creature's body jerked in one last, terrible convulsion, its tail whipping violently. Instinctively, Ignis held his ground; he knew his place-between Noctis and any danger-his sacred and solemn duty. The tail caught him at the waist and batted him across the room. He sailed over the rushing water and landed hard on his left side by the edge of the pool. All the breath was forced out of him in an agonizing rush.

"Iggy!" he heard Noctis shout.

He heard their footsteps running toward him. Good. That was good. They were moving _away_ from the creature, which was a dangerous beast even as it was dying.

"Iggy!" Prompto cried.

He couldn't breathe, which was frustrating and painful and terrifying. He was trying so hard, mouth opened and gasping, but no air would come. His whole body hurt, aching for air, aching for half a dozen other reasons. He drew up his legs toward the hurt, curling up on his right side, the side that hurt the least.

"Iggy, can you hear me?" Gladio demanded, and his big hand was suddenly on Ignis's shoulder.

Ignis could hear him, but he couldn't get enough breath to respond. He tried nodding and was able to jerk his head up and down a couple of times.

"Just breathe, buddy," Gladio said with surprising gentleness.

_Can't you see I'm trying?_ Ignis wanted to demand.

"What can we do?" Noctis sounded frightened. "What do we do?"

_Just let me get my breath back, and I'll tell you. _

"Oh, man. Oh, man," Prompto moaned.

Ignis shuddered, fists clenching, one of them pressed hard to his middle, sticky with blood. Finally, finally, thank the _gods_, there was air. He managed to wrangle it into his lungs with a hoarse, painful gasp, then another, then another.

"There you go. Easy, Iggy." Gladio squeezed his shoulder.

"Is it…" Ignis coughed, and that hurt. Of course it did. Everything hurt. "Is-" Another ridiculously painful cough.

"It's dead," Prompto confirmed. "It's _suuuper_ dead."

"Yeah, we did good," Gladio agreed.

Noctis was quiet. Probably blaming himself. Ignis wanted to tell him not to, wanted to advise him to bask in the celebration of victory, but his limited air supply prevented him from giving the needful advice.

"Do you think there are more of them?" Prompto asked anxiously.

"Could be. We'd better move," Gladio said. He squeezed Ignis's shoulder again. "Can you stand?"

Ignis managed a deeper breath, with great effort that seemed to shake his entire body. "I'll do anything to get out of this terrible place."

That brought a small smile to Noct's face, so the effort was worth it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Gladio**

They still weren't out of the woods, and Gladio didn't like the situation much. Sure, the big ugly lizard was dead, but they were still stuck in a cavern gods knew how far underground, all four of them injured in some way: Iggy bleeding all over the place, trying to tell them he was fine; Noctis blaming himself, limping, dead tired; Prompto trying to rub the sore spot on his back, shivering despite the fact that he was swaddled in Iggy's coat; and Gladio himself somehow surviving the worst headache of his life.

He and Prompto were supporting Ignis between them as they staggered along by the river, past the corpse of the lizard beast, toward a dark opening in the cavern wall. As they passed by the dead thing, Gladio was struck with rage. He handed off Iggy's arm to Noctis and turned to kick the creature's open, broken mouth. Once, twice, again, roaring his anger.

"He knows it's dead, right?" he heard Prompto murmur behind him.

"Yeah, he's just working off a little steam," Noctis replied quietly.

Gladio kicked it again, right in its ugly snout.

"Gladio," came Ignis's voice, quiet and calm.

Something about Iggy's steadiness was catchy, and Gladio nodded and sighed. "I'm coming." He hurried back to the team, pushing Noctis aside and getting a shoulder under Ignis's arm.

"I can walk-" _cough cough_ "-on my own," the strategist protested.

"Yeah, right. I've seen Noctis catch fish who'd manage walking better than you," Gladio shot back as they continued moving forward, away from the creature that had nearly killed them all.

Specs was quiet. He must have realized Gladio was right. His feet were dragging; he was barely taking steps. They were going to have to do some first aid, Gladio figured, and with limited supplies, far from the haven.

"So…" Prompto ventured cheerfully. "We did pretty good back there. Whaddaya think that thing would be worth if there was a bounty on it?"

"Mmm… Enough to rent us a nice hotel room for weeks," Noctis mused.

"Yeah, I think we deserve that after that battle!" Prompto agreed.

"I'll settle for camp and our tents and our stuff." Gladio adjusted his grip on Ignis, pulling the slighter man closer, taking some of his weight off Prompto.

"I'll cook us a nice meal once we get back," Ignis said, then started coughing again, a horrible, hoarse cough that shuddered through his body.

Gladio and Prompto met eyes over Iggy's head. The little blond guy's eyes were wide and round and scared.

"You know, I might even eat some beans if that's what you're cooking," Noctis said, reaching to pat Ignis on the back. "I'm so hungry, I could eat anything."

"I have a hard time believing that," Gladio muttered, but he knew what Noctis was doing, knew the kid was trying to keep everyone's spirits high, the same thing Ignis was trying to do by denying how badly he was hurt.

Ignis stopped coughing, but his breathing sounded ragged and rough. He stumbled, not able to hide a soft sound of pain, pressing a hand to his stomach.

Gladio shook his head and swore. "We can't keep this up. We don't know how long we've got till we're outta here. We have to stop and rest."

"Nonsense," Ignis panted. "Mmmf." His body tensed, and for a second, he let his head rest against Gladio's shoulder. He quickly jerked himself upright. "We have to get out of this place as soon as we can."

"I'd rather we all get out alive," Gladio countered. He stopped walking, and Ignis was powerless to go on without his support. "We rest here. We've got fresh running water, and there are fish in the stream if we have to eat."

"No beds, though," Noctis protested, but he stopped walking, too, leaning against the wall and yawning.

"Prompto, help me settle him down," Gladio ordered.

Prompto nodded, and together, they lowered Ignis to the ground and leaned him back against the cool cave wall.

"Thank you," Ignis murmured, leaning back his head.

"We need to check your wounds," Gladio insisted.

Ignis sighed, resigned. "Alright."

Gladio unbuttoned Ignis's shirt, his jaw clenching at what it revealed-bruises and blood everywhere. The bruises were spread darkly all over Ignis's torso, and the blood leaked from a long gash across his stomach.

The shield swore. "How have you made it this far, Specs?"

"A little luck, I suppose," Ignis said lightly.

As carefully as he could, Gladio peeled back the blood-sticky shirt from Ignis's body, wanting to punch something when Ignis flinched and grimaced in pain.

"Oh, man," Noctis breathed, hovering nearby. "That looks bad."

"Probably looks worse than it is," Ignis protested, but his words ended in a breathless groan.

"What can we do?" Prompto asked.

"It's-it's the bleeding that's the problem," Ignis answered.

"Yeah, no kidding," Gladio muttered.

"I need… pressure on the wound. If you-Mmm." Iggy closed his eyes, teeth clenching, body going stiff.

"Iggy?" Prompto touched the strategist's shoulder.

"Just rest, Specs. We'll look after you." Gladio pressed a gentle hand on Iggy's other shoulder.

Ignis opened his eyes and looked up at them for a second before closing them again and nodding.

Gladio looked up at Noct. "Jacket lining," he said.

Noctis blinked. "Huh?"

"Jacket lining," Gladio repeated. "We can use it to make bandages."

"Oh! Right!" Noctis shrugged out of his jacket and knelt on the ground, careful of his injured leg. He flipped his jacket inside out and started tearing at the lining.

Prompto immediately followed suit, ripping strips out of the inside of Ignis's jacket.

"A pity," the injured tactician murmured. "They were rather stylish jackets."

"Yeah, well you're more important," Noctis insisted, his voice wavering on the last word. He handed a few long strips of cloth to Gladio, which Gladio quickly used to press against the gash in Ignis's stomach.

Ignis sucked in a sharp breath, body tensing.

"You're gonna be fine, Iggy," Gladio assured him, but he frowned at what he felt under his hands. He slid one hand gently upward and ran it along Iggy's ribcage on the left side.

Ignis gasped and clenched his teeth.

"Aw, man, Iggy. You're really trying to outdo us." Gladio withdrew his hand. "Broken ribs, too?"

"Probably," Ignis admitted.

Gladio stared at the man in sheer admiration. How in the name of the Six had Ignis kept his wits-and strength-about him for this long?

"What do we do about broken ribs?" Prompto spoke up.

"Same thing we do about cuts-wrap 'em up," Gladio told him.

**Prompto**

The cave was cold. It was even colder without the nice soft jacket lining that had kept him warm for the last couple of hours. But Iggy needed it more than he did.

"I can build us a fire of sorts," Gladio declared, sounding as confident as always. "I can stack us up some rocks, then Noct, you can cast a fire spell over them. They'll be hot for hours."

"We can try it," Noctis said with a shrug.

Prompto sat with Ignis while Gladio and Noct experimented with building their makeshift heater. Ignis's waist was wrapped in bandages, bandages that were already bloody in the middle. He was still awake, somehow, breathing in hoarse pants. He sounded sick.

Impulsively, Prompto reached out and felt his friend's forehead. It was hotter than it should be, and Prompto's stomach twisted.

"How's your back?" Ignis asked him.

Prompto blinked, then rolled with it. It was Iggy being Iggy, everybody's big brother-or mom or dad or fussy grandparent. "It's better. Itching."

"That's good. Means it's healing."

"Yeah." Prompto hoped so. "Maybe you should sleep, Specs. Feels like you have a fever. And you look…" He trailed off, realizing he might sound rude.

"Hmm." Ignis's lips twitched in what was almost a smile. "I can only imagine, based on how I feel."

From somewhere behind Prompto, there was a blast of heat, a yelp from Noctis, and a burst of laughter from Gladio.

"Sounds like they're having fun," Ignis murmured.

"Trying to build a fire," Prompto explained.

"So I gathered."

Prompto glanced over his shoulder to see a smoking, blackened pile of rocks and Noctis backing away from it, hopping on one foot, while Gladio stood akimbo, chuckling.

"Don't worry, Iggy. They've got it covered. We'll be nice and warm tonight."

He turned back to Ignis to see that the other man's eyes were closed behind his glasses.

"Ignis?" Prompto touched Iggy's shoulder. His friend remained still. At least he was breathing… although that sounded awful, all rough and desperate, like Ignis knew he had to breathe, but it was hard and it hurt.

Prompto sighed and rocked back on his heels. He wondered if sleeping would help Ignis heal or if it might somehow make him worse.

"How is he?" Noctis asked, limping back to Prompto's side.

"Not good." Prompto looked up at his friend. "He's got a fever." He shivered. "He doesn't need to be here. He needs to be somewhere safe."

"It's a little safer here now." Noctis nodded over his shoulder. "We got the fire started."

"I heard."

Noctis sat down on the ground beside Prompto, gazing at Ignis. "It's my fault," he said quietly. "The fishing trip was my idea, and I suggested the cave." He swore. "He was hurt defending me."

"And me," Prompto offered. "The first time he was hurt, that is. I froze up." His throat felt suddenly tight, and he swallowed and cleared it. "There was a wasp, like the one that stung me. I was scared, and I froze, and it dragged him off the ground. I shot it, but he fell, and when he fell, another bug jumped him and tried to gut him."

"It's not your fault, Prompto," Noctis said, laying a hand on his shoulder.

Prompto glared at him. "Then it's not yours either, Noct."

"Whoa. Okay. Just trying to-"

"We can't have a pity party," Prompto continued, as annoyed with himself as he was with Noctis. "We have to stay upbeat for Ignis."

Noctis held his gaze steadily. After a moment, he nodded. "Yeah. You're right."

**Noctis**

For once in his life, the Lucian heir could not sleep. They were taking turns at keeping watch, and it wasn't his turn, it was Gladio's, but he still wasn't sleeping. The floor of the cave was hard, in spite of his tattered jacket bundled under his head, and he was still a little chilly, in spite of the heated rocks that glowed nearby. He couldn't stop thinking about Ignis, and every once in a while, he lifted his head and looked toward the unconscious adviser, just to make sure Iggy was breathing.

"He's still alive," Gladio said when Noctis checked again.

"I know. I just-" Noctis sighed and sat up, running his hands through his hair. He glanced over at Prompto, who was curled up in a pitiful little ball close to the warm rocks. Then he looked at Gladio, who sat against the wall, his sword propped next to him. And finally, his eyes settled on Ignis, who slept fitfully, his jacket draped across him, ostensibly by Prompto.

Noctis clenched his fists and pressed them down on his knees. He wanted to slug himself. He was responsible for these men. They were just as much his responsibility as he was theirs. Every day, they faced danger for him. It was their job… but he knew, deep in his heart, that his safety was more than just a job to them. They weren't just his guards; they were his brothers, in everything but blood.

Ignis grimaced in his sleep, wrapping an arm tightly around his body.

Noctis dug his fingers into his knees, wishing he could take away his friend's pain, his _brother's _pain.

"Can't we do anything else for him?" he asked, instantly regretting the harshness of his tone. None of this was Gladio's fault.

Gladio was quiet, and Noctis turned to see Gladio holding his head between his hands.

"Gladio?" His voice emerged gentler this time. "You okay?"

"No, I'm not okay," Gladio growled. "My head hurts like a behemoth stepped on it, and Ignis is…"

_Don't say dying. He's not. He's just lost some blood. He just has a little fever. So maybe he has a few broken ribs. That's not fatal. He's sleeping. He'll sleep it off. _

"... Ignis is hurt and sick, and I can't-" Gladio's voice broke off in a wordless snarl.

_Maybe we should take bets on which of us is going to punch something first. _

Noctis closed his eyes and breathed deeply, trying to think what Ignis would tell him to do, what his father would tell him to do. Their advice had often been one and the same. Calming himself, he stood and limped to the stream, carrying his raggedy jacket with him. He tore out the last bit of lining that was left and dipped it in the frigid water, then limped to where Gladio was sitting. He slid down against the wall, wincing as he stretched his injured leg out in front of him.

"Here." He offered the wet rag.

Gladio stared at him, frowning.

"For your head, doofus." Noctis elbowed the larger man.

Gladio rolled his eyes at the insult. "Thanks, wuss." He took the cold, wet rag and pressed it to the knot on his forehead, instantly sighing with relief.

"Better?"

"Better."

At least he could help one of his brothers, Noctis thought.

"You don't have to stay awake all night," Gladio told him, looking sideways at him.

Noctis smiled a little. "Neither do you."

They shared a knowing grin, then looked toward Ignis and Prompto, who still slept.

"Really." Noctis pressed a hand to Gladio's arm. "If you get some sleep, I promise, I will, too. I'll wake Prompto to take his shift." He started to get up.

"Nah, wait." Gladio shook his head. "Give the little guy a few more minutes to sleep."


	5. Chapter 5

**Ignis**

"Ignis? Ignis. Come on, old friend. I need you to wake up."

It was Noctis's voice, perhaps the only thing that could reach Ignis's consciousness through the maelstrom of pain and weariness that surrounded it. He opened his eyes and lifted his head to see Noct looking down at him. Noct's hand was on his shoulder.

"What is it?" he asked. His throat burned, and he nearly coughed, but managed to swallow instead.

"You need to drink some water. Sit up, buddy."

Noctis Lucis Caelum, royalty, the Lucian heir, should not be helping him sit up. It was not the natural order of things, but there was no helping it. There was no other way Ignis was getting up off the ground, so he allowed his charge, his friend, his liege, to lift his shoulders up off the cave floor. Noctis was careful, but it still hurt, and Ignis clenched his teeth to keep from yelping as pain shot through his wound and through his battered ribs.

"Hey, Iggy!" Prompto called cheerfully from nearby. "Feeling any better?"

"Perhaps a bit," Ignis lied, managing a smile, already breathless just from sitting up. It was ridiculous that he was leaning against Noct; the world had been turned upside down in one ill-fated day.

"You need to drink some water. You have a fever, and you sound terrible," Gladio commented. He was standing close to Ignis, arms crossed, frowning down at him. It was concern, the tactician knew, not anger… but Gladio tended to process difficult emotions as anger.

The muscular man leaned down and helped Noctis lift Ignis off the ground and onto his feet. The adviser's head spun, and his stomach churned, but he did not protest as they practically dragged him to the edge of the water and settled him down. He reached into the rushing stream and cupped water in his gloved hand, sipped some, and repeated the action. Leaning down _hurt. _But his friends were right. He needed water. And they sat by him, supporting him.

"How's your head, Gladio?" he asked breathlessly, taking off his spectacles to splash a little water on his face.

"Better, thanks to Noct." Gladio grinned at the prince and gave the boy's shoulder a playful shove around Ignis's back.

"He can be quite resourceful, can't he?" Ignis smiled, cleaning his glasses before putting them back on. An uncomfortable tremor ran through his body, and he held his forearm against his forehead for a moment. "_Am_ I feverish? I can't tell."

"Yeah, I think so, Iggy," Noct answered.

"Prompto, you ready to scout ahead?" Gladio asked, standing and turning to the smaller man.

"Uh-huh, ready for action!" Prompto declared. He seemed in the best shape of all of them… ironic, since mere hours before, he had been the injured one, stung by the wasp, confused and weak.

Gladio and Prompto set out to scout ahead, while Ignis laid down again and Noctis soaked his swollen ankle in the cold water.

"Make sure to elevate that foot once you've taken it out of the water," Ignis advised, feeling his consciousness fade again. His body trembled with another involuntary shudder. He wondered how high his temperature was.

"Rest, Iggy. Don't worry about the rest of us," Noct ordered.

"I'm afraid I can't help myself. It's part of… part of my nature…" Something caught in his chest, and he coughed. The coughing didn't want to stop, and he rolled onto his right side, turning his face toward the ground as he hacked and gasped for breath.

Noctis scooted closer, heedless of his bare, swollen foot, rubbing Ignis's shoulder and back. "Hey, hey, easy, Specs."

Ignis finally caught enough of a breath to stop coughing. He rested his forehead against the cool stone floor, shivering. "Your foot, Noct…"

"I'll elevate it when I'm sure you're okay," Noctis argued.

Ignis sighed and turned his head, cheek against the ground. He closed his eyes. "I'm alright," he croaked.

Noctis huffed a disbelieving laugh.

"I'm alright," Ignis repeated faintly. The cave seemed to be spinning around him, then taking him with it, rolling and turning in a dizzying fashion. He gripped the floor as hard as he could.

"Iggy?"

Noctis's voice sounded distant, but he was right there… wasn't he?

"Noct…" He reached toward Noct's voice. His hand trembled.

"I'm right here." Warm hands clasped around Ignis's cold one. Noctis sounded scared.

"Right here," Ignis repeated vaguely. He tried to open his eyes. His eyelids were leaden. Pain shot through his chest, burned across his stomach. "Mmm…" He fought it, but it won, dragging him down into unconsciousness.

**Noctis**

"Iggy! Iggy!" Noctis shook the hand that suddenly went limp in his. His heartbeat kicked into high gear.

Ignis had gone suddenly, frightfully still-and pale, his face almost white, save for hectic red spots high on his cheekbones.

"Ignis!" Noctis touched his friend's face, felt the heat, a ragged puff of breath. At least he was breathing. At least there was that. "Aw, man…" He touched Iggy's back, tentative, not sure where he could touch the man's torso without hurting something. He looked down the river, down the tunnel, toward the darkness that had swallowed up Gladio and Prompto and hoped they were okay. Surely, they would find a way out…

Something splashed noisily in the water, and Noctis scooted closer to its edge, peering down to see a school of salmon leaping by. He smiled, fingers itching for the handle of a fishing rod. These guys would put up a fight, but he would be able to catch them… then Iggy could cook them and even Noct would eat them. He would eat almost anything right now, he thought… even beans!

Then he frowned, watching the school of salmon shimmer and wriggle their way downstream. And that was it-salmon didn't often swim downstream. Fish of their size were usually spotted swimming upstream, toward headwaters to lay their eggs… Why were these salmon swimming with the current?

There was another splash, a loud gurgle, and the tunnel shuddered.

"Oh, no," Noctis muttered. "Not again." He stood and summoned his sword, moving between Ignis's unconscious form and the water.

The light from his flashlight glinted off the water, casting rainbows and shadows. Further upstream, something big moved in the shadows, steadily approaching with the current.

Noctis knelt and cupped water in his free hand, splashing it on Ignis's face. "Ignis, we've gotta move! You have to get up! Come on!"

Ignis groaned and stirred. "Noct?"

"Get up! That's an order! Come on!" Noctis grabbed hold of his friend's arm. "Something's coming. We have to warn the others!"

"Another monster?" With Noct's help, Ignis got to his knees, hunched over and wheezing. He seemed disoriented, his eyes glazed behind his glasses.

"Yeah, another one. Come _on_, Iggy!" Noctis dragged his adviser to his feet. He knew it had to hurt. He knew Ignis was tired, sick, and weak-which was exactly why they had to move. They were currently no match for another monster like the lizard creature.

The bulky shadow in the water moved ever closer. When it bumped against the narrow sides of the channel, the ground rumbled. It had to be huge.

Noctis grabbed Ignis around the waist, latching onto the taller man's belt and dragging him forward. "Come on, come on, come on!" The beams of their flashlights bobbed madly ahead of them as they staggered along beside the river, Noctis dragging his leg-and dragging Ignis, who struggled manfully to keep up with Noctis.

"The tunnel," Ignis gasped out, grabbing onto the back of Noctis's collar. "The tunnel narrows ahead. How large is-" He broke off, coughing, his body shuddering, knees folding.

Noctis mercilessly hauled Ignis back upright before he could collapse. He steeled himself against Ignis's soft grunt of pain.

"Noct, how large-"

The raven-haired royal glanced over his shoulder. He knew now what Ignis was trying to get him to see. "It's big. I think it's too big to stay in the water where it narrows."

"Then we should get in," Ignis said calmly, as if he were suggesting they get into the Regalia and not a rushing stream in the middle of a tunnel where they were being stalked by _another _giant horrible murderous thing.

"Ignis, I don't-"

"It's our only chance," Ignis bit out.

He was right. Noctis knew it as he heard the thing in the darkness climb out of the water, splashing and dripping, panting hungrily, its heavy footsteps shaking the ground. He adjusted his grip on Ignis, pulled him closer.

"Hang on," Noct said.

And he jumped.

**Prompto**

"Oh, yeah! Sweet victory!" Prompto pumped his fist in the air-the humid, open air, the _outside _air. They had done it! They had followed the underground branch of the river until it came out into the forest, under the open sky. It wasn't a bright blue sky, but a cloudy one, darkening with the approach of sunset; however, it was the most beautiful sky Prompto had ever seen.

"Look!" He pointed at the ground. "Grass!" He bent, laughing, to kiss it.

Gladio chuckled. "Don't start celebrating just yet, kid. We've still got to go back for Noct and Iggy."

"How far do you think we are from the haven?" Prompto asked, straightening and shading his eyes as a burst of setting sunlight struck from between two swirling clouds.

Gladio crossed his muscular arms and looked around. "Not far. I think it's over that way." He pointed toward a distant clearing.

"Should we go get some potions?" Prompto wondered. "Iggy's looking pretty rough…"

Gladio considered, then shook his head. "I think we need to get him out of there. The less time he spends underground, the better." He clapped a big hand down on Prompto's shoulder. "Let's go back and get 'em."

They walked back to the cave opening they'd found. The stream burst forth from it into a waterfall that dropped about twenty feet down into what was probably part of the main river branch. Several big, shiny objects went barrelling out of the tunnel and over the falls, splashing into the river below.

"Hey, look at that!" Prompto pointed. "Are those salmon?"

"Looks like. Don't tell Noct or he'll want to go fishing again."

As they headed back into the cave, Prompto glanced over his shoulder, a chill running up his spine. Something unsettled him, something about those fish…

"Hey, Prompto!" Gladio called from deeper inside the cave. "You coming?"

"Yeah, right behind you!" He hurried to catch up with the bigger man. "Do you feel weird all of a sudden?"

Gladio frowned. "No. Why?"

"I dunno." Prompto shrugged. "I just-"

A gurgling roar blasted out of the cave, from somewhere beyond them in the dark.

"Uh… Gladio?" Prompto moved closer to his friend.

Gladio pushed the smaller man behind him. "Stay here."

Prompto summoned his pistol and cocked it. "Not a chance."


	6. Chapter 6

**Noctis**

Water, water everywhere, and all of it was trying to kill him. Noctis struggled to keep his head above the freezing cold water as the current dragged him rapidly through the tunnel. He clung to Ignis, arms clamped around Ignis's chest from behind, as they were hurled together down the channel.

The monster behind them was still in pursuit, running along the side of the stream, and it was gaining, steadily growing closer. He could hear its heavy pants and pounding strides.

"Noct!" Ignis cried, his voice hoarse and breathless. "Rocks!"

Noctis tried to shift so that he was between Ignis and the rocks ahead, but the current was too strong for him to fully control his movements, so they hit the rocks sideways. Unfortunately, it was his right side, and as soon as he kicked out his leg to shield them both from the rocks, he regretted it. He yelped as pain shot up his leg from his already injured ankle. His body went involuntarily limp for a split second, just long enough for his grip on Ignis to slip.

The current rushed between them, threatening to tear them apart. Ignis reached back, and Noctis spun in the water, his leg useless, but he was able, at least, to extend his arm. He latched onto Ignis's forearm, and Ignis latched on to his. They spun, whipped around by the current, trying to move closer to each other.

Noctis coughed and sputtered as water splashed over his face, but he kept a death grip on his friend's arm. The current dragged Ignis roughly along a protrusion of rock, and the adviser gasped, his grip weakening for a moment, but he somehow managed to hang on.

And then-what else could go wrong?-a massive jaw was snapping down at them from above the river, the mouth of the largest sahagin Noctis had ever seen. He kicked off the side of the channel, ignoring the sharp pain in his right ankle, dragging Ignis with him, away from the snapping teeth.

"Noct! Iggy!"

It was one of the most beautiful sounds Noctis had ever heard-Gladio's loud, rumbling voice.

Noctis raised a hand above the water, waved it wildly. He could see Gladio and Prompto now, their faces pale above their flashlights.

They were both waving their arms and yelling, but now Noctis couldn't hear their voices over the rush and roar of the river and the growling, snapping, and pounding of the giant sahagin. Was the sound of the water getting louder? He finally heard Gladio's desperate bellow.

"Noct! Iggy! Waterfall!"

Noctis and Ignis moved as one, both inspired by the same idea, a brainwave between old friends. Each man reached out with an arm and a leg to brace himself against the channel walls while keeping his grasp on the other man's arm. Fortunately-or perhaps, thoughtfully-Ignis had moved to the right, leaving Noctis's stronger leg to brace against the left wall. The current fought them, battered them, but they held on, managing to stop their forward momentum.

"Ha!" Noctis yelled triumphantly, water spilling over his shoulders and all around him. He looked to his right to grin at Ignis, then frowned to see that the giant sahagin was closing in on Iggy's position.

"We're coming! Hang on!" Prompto yelled. He fired at the creature, but his shot went wild. It struck the far wall of the tunnel, dislodging a fall of rock.

"Noct," Ignis shouted above the roar of the water, "you have to let go."

Noctis shook his head. "No!"

"Let go of me so I can stand and fight!"

"_No_!"

"Hold on to the wall, Noct," Ignis ordered. "Hold on tight!"

Noctis tightened his grip on Ignis's arm and shook his head.

Somehow, injured as he was, Ignis managed to snatch his arm from Noctis's grasp, summoning his daggers, and, with whatever strength he had left, pulling himself up over the side of the channel, onto the stone floor, mere yards from the closing monster.

"Noooo!" Noctis shouted, clinging to the side of the channel. "Iggy, no!"

**Gladio**

What the hell was Iggy doing?

Gladio broke into a run, watching with fear, anger, and admiration as Ignis hauled himself upright, hair dripping wet, shirt flying loose around his bandaged waist, a dagger in each hand, taking a defensive stance as the monster came charging at him, the ground shaking beneath it.

Ignis glanced over his shoulder and met Gladio's eyes, glanced at Prompto, who was scrambling to the edge of the river to help Noct.

"Stalactites!" Ignis yelled, pointing.

And Gladio got it. He reached Prompto, pushed him aside, and bent down to haul the sopping wet prince out of the water.

"Prompto, shoot the stalactites! Bring this cave down on that thing!" he shouted.

Across the river, Ignis slung a dagger, slowing the monster. He threw another, and the giant sahagin stumbled.

Gladio helped Noctis to his feet. "How's your leg?"

"We have to help Iggy," Noctis panted, slumping over with his hands on his knees.

"He's got a plan." Gladio patted the younger man's shoulder. "Stay here." He summoned his sword, hefted it over his shoulder.

BANG!

Prompto hit one of the stalactites dead on and it fell, pinning the sahagin's tail to the floor.

"Good shot!" Gladio called, moving to the edge of the river.

"Thanks! Going for another one!" Prompto took aim.

Ignis was still holding his ground, gods knew how, beaten up as he was.

Prompto fired again, and another stalactite fell, glancing off the sahagin's back. But this time, the whole cave vibrated, and the ceiling above them rumbled ominously.

Noctis grabbed Gladio's arm. "We have to get out of here."

"Yep." Gladio eyed up the river, the distance across and the distance to Iggy, who had struck the sahagin again with his dagger's bloodying its face.

"What are you thinking?" Noctis asked.

"Gonna get Iggy and get out of here."

Noctis nodded, wiping wet bangs out of his eyes. "Good. I'll see if I can warp out with Prompto."

"Sure you're up to it?"

Noctis shrugged. "Does it matter if I am or not?"

Gladio grinned. The kid was royalty, but he was tougher than he looked. "Let's do this."

**Ignis**

The gargantuan sahagin had shaken free of the rocks on its tail and was slithering toward him, but Ignis kept his cool. He noticed that the creature favored its front left leg, and he sent his daggers flying, striking the weakened limb and simultaneously dodging a burst of scalding water that emitted from the monster's mouth. His knees nearly buckled, and he had a suspicion that dodge was the last one he had left in him. The adrenaline was wearing off, and he was wearing out.

"Prompto!" he called. "Again! Bring down the ceiling on him!"

"Not yet!" Gladio countered. "Not till Iggy's out of the danger zone!"

Ignis glanced back to see Prompto looking back and forth between him and Gladio. Then Prompto lifted his chin, took aim, and fired-not at the ceiling, but at the sahagin itself, driving it back, opening a bloody hole in its back.

The cave shuddered, and rocks tumbled from cracks in the ceiling. The structural integrity of the place was compromised. It was only a matter of time before the whole cavern collapsed.

Ignis took a few steps back, toward the river, away from the creature that was curling in on itself, nursing its wounds. He wished he could afford to do the same. His whole body ached, shot through with feverish tremors.

There was a crackling sound above, and he looked up to see a wide crack snake across the ceiling.

"Iggy!" Noctis cried.

Ignis looked across the river at his friends, then he looked at the river himself and sighed. Were he not injured, he could surely make it across, by swimming or even in one long leap. In his current state, he would never make it.

A wave of pain and weariness washed over him, and he swayed, then dropped to his knees. An agonizing spasm burst across his stomach, and he grunted and pressed a hand there to feel more blood leaking through the bandages. He gritted his teeth and forced himself to look up, to face his enemy.

The monster was slinking back into the darkness, hissing. The ceiling above it continued to crack and buckle.

"Iggy!" one of his friends yelled. Maybe all of them yelled it.

_Go, _he wanted to call to them. _Get out now! _But he could not draw enough breath for a shout.

The ground beneath him shook, and he fell forward on his hands, head bowed, praying that his friends, his brothers, would have the good sense to escape the cave before it buried them all.

**Prompto**

It was like a scene from a movie-Gladio leaping across the whole breadth of the channel, roaring like a mighty lion.

Further back in the cave, the ceiling was falling to pieces. Somewhere in the dark, the big sahagin shrieked in pain.

"Hurry! Hurry!" Prompto yelled to Gladio. He jumped up and down, tugging on Noctis's sleeve.

He and Noct were supposed to be escaping from the cave, but they both stood transfixed, watching Gladio speed to Ignis's rescue.

Gladio reached Ignis's side just as the bespectacled man collapsed, scooping him up off the ground and into his arms. A huge chunk of ceiling crashed down close beside him.

"Go! Gladio! Run!" Noctis shouted.

And Gladio did, Iggy's arms and legs dangling around him. Big chunks of the ceiling were falling all around him.

Prompto suddenly realized that the ceiling was collapsing around him and Noct, too. He shook Noct's shoulder. "Dude, we gotta move!"

"Yeah! Hang on!" Noctis linked arms with Prompto, drew his sword with the other arm, then-

-WHOOSH! They were flying through the air in a blur of blue light, and Prompto couldn't help but whoop in delight. Then they were falling, and the ground outside the cave, below the waterfall was rushing up at them, and his yell of delight turned to one of sheer terror.

Then Noctis warped forward again, and they were landing on a patch of mossy ground under a tree. Prompto staggered free from Noct's grip and grabbed hold of the tree, hugging it.

Behind him, Noctis sucked in a sharp breath, and Prompto released the tree and spun around just in time to see Noctis fall.

"Oh, dude! Are you okay?" He quickly knelt beside his friend.

"Ugh, my leg," Noctis groaned, reaching toward his right ankle.

Already, Prompto could see that it was badly swollen. "We'll get you a potion when we get back to camp, buddy."

Noctis nodded, sitting up on his elbows, teeth clenched.

Then, above them, up in the cave, there was a thunderous crash.

"Wait." Prompto's stomach dropped. "Did-did you see Iggy and Gladdy-?"

"They got out," Noctis said through his teeth. "I'm sure they got out."

They gazed up at the cave opening to see a huge cloud of dust burst from it, while rocks tumbled down, rapidly filling up the entrance.

"Noct, where are they?"

Almost as soon as Prompto asked the question, it was answered.

There was Gladio, hanging over the top of the waterfall, clutching Ignis close to him, and then they were going down, tumbling, flipping, surrounded by water, disappearing into the deep, churning water at the bottom of the falls.


	7. Chapter 7

Noctis

"Help me up!" Noctis yelled, yanking on Prompto's arm.

"But your leg-" the blond protested.

"Help me up!" Noctis snapped, swearing.

With shaking hands, Prompto helped Noctis to his feet-or foot, rather-and Noctis immediately regretted his tone. Prompto was worried and shaken, too. He didn't deserve rudeness.

"Sorry," Noctis muttered.

"'S fine. I just…" Prompto gazed toward the base of the waterfall.

"Let's go," Noctis said after a breath, gathering his courage for what they might find. With Prompto helping him, he limped to the edge of the river, frantically searching the rushing water for any sign of-

"Gladio!" Prompto cried, pointing.

Gladio emerged from the water near the river's edge, throwing back his head with a loud gasp for air. In his arms was Ignis. And Noctis's first, heart-stopping thought was that Ignis was dead. Ignis was utterly still, utterly limp in the larger man's arms, head thrown back, arms and legs dangling, spectacles missing, eyes closed, blood all over the front of him.

With an apologetic glance at Noctis, Prompto steadied him and left him, sprinting toward Gladio, helping him out of the water onto the riverbank, hands reaching toward Ignis, then jerking back.

Swallowing down the cold knot in his throat, Noctis staggered forward as fast as he could. The pain in his leg felt like nothing compared to the anguish in his heart.

Panting, broad shoulders heaving, Gladio knelt by the river and gently settled Ignis down in front of him, leaning the tactician's head and shoulders back against him. Prompto hovered with restless, nervous energy. And Noctis finally made it to his friends, dropping to his knees by Ignis's still form.

"Is he-?" he started.

"I don't know," Gladio cut him off with a breathless growl.

Noctis reached out, touched Ignis's pale face, sliding his fingers down to the adviser's throat, touching the pulse point just under his jaw. His fingers trembled at what they found, and he closed his eyes.

"Noct?" Gladio rumbled.

"He's alive," Noctis breathed. "Barely, I think, but… he's alive."

"Gods." Gladio closed his eyes and bowed his head against Ignis's for a moment.

"What do we do?" The words burst out of Prompto in a wild rush. "What do we do?"

"We get him back to camp and marinate him in potions," Gladio said.

Ignis stirred, coughing raggedly, gasping for air, then coughing again.

"Easy, Iggy. I've got you. I've got you," Gladio murmured.

"Noct?" Ignis wheezed, shivering.

Noct's stomach twisted.

"Is fine," Gladio said calmly.

"Prompto?" Ignis choked out.

"Right here, buddy," Prompto said quickly, touching Ignis's shoulder.

"Good," Ignis breathed. "We'll all… all be together for dinner, then."

Noct's nose burned, his throat tightening. He swallowed. "Yeah. Yeah, Iggy… We will." He reached for Ignis's hand and squeezed it.

Gladio looked up at the darkening sky. "We'd better get moving. If demons catch us like this, we're dead."

"You good to carry him?" Noctis asked. "You took a few hits yourself."

Gladio rolled his eyes. "I'll be fine. I've got him."

"And I've got you, Noct," Prompto volunteered, offering a hand.

With Prompto's help, Noctis staggered to his feet, and Gladio stood carefully, lifting Ignis with him.

The advisor closed his eyes, frowning. "I apologize for burdening…" His words broke off in an anguished moan, and his head tilted back against Gladio's shoulder. His body convulsed with a wet, ragged cough.

Noctis felt cold to his very bones. "We have to hurry."

"Yeah, we do." Gladio set his jaw and nodded toward a clearing in the distance. "Camp is that way! Come on!"

Ignis lost consciousness again as Gladio set a grueling pace over the rocks and through the forest toward the haven. Noctis gritted his teeth against the pain, hobbling along, being practically dragged by Prompto.

"Just go, Gladio! We'll catch up," he called to his shield.

Gladio nodded once to him and took off running, Ignis completely limp in his arms.

When they finally caught up to him atop the haven, Noctis was sweating and panting, his leg aching. He dropped to his knees beside Gladio, who was bent over Ignis, crushing a potion. Noctis doubted it was the first he'd tried.

Ignis was awake again, barely, shivering with fever, breathing in desperate gasps. His eyes searched the sky for a moment, then settled on Noctis's face.

"Noct… your ankle," he panted.

"Don't worry about it, Ignis. Let us take care of you for once." Noctis grabbed a potion from the pile beside Gladio and crushed it over Ignis's bloody waist.

"Ah, that's better," Ignis sighed, closing his eyes.

"But not all the way healed," Gladio argued. "You need more."

"Don't waste them all on me." Ignis opened his eyes and frowned up at his friends. "Don't you dare do that."

Gladio rolled his eyes and crushed another potion over Ignis's stuttering chest.

"Now give one to Noct," Ignis murmured sleepily. "And Gladio… Prompto… make sure they..." His breath hitched for a moment, and Noctis realized that he was fighting sleep, trying to stay awake long enough to make sure his friends were cared for.

"Okay, Iggy. They'll take their medicine, too," Prompto assured him.

"Good." Ignis smiled faintly, and his eyes closed again.

Noctis touched his advisor's forehead. His fingers trembled. "Fever's fading. Still a fever, but it's not as bad."

"Breathing sounds better, too," Gladio said, sitting back from their unconscious companion. He ran his big hands through his hair. "That was a close one."

"Here you go." Prompto handed Noct and Gladio a potion apiece. "You might as well take care of yourselves and make Iggy proud."

Noctis stretched out his injured leg and crushed the potion over his ankle. All the tension seemed to ease out of his body with the pain, and he nearly collapsed with relief, laughing hoarsely instead.

"Ah, yeah. That's what I'm talking about!" Gladio exclaimed after he took his own potion. "No more headache!"

"What about Iggy? He's still got a bit of a fever."

"He might be sick for a while, in spite of the potions," Gladio said grimly. "I don't know how he survived back there."

"He survived for us," Prompto said, and they both turned to look at him. He stood nearby, solemnly observing Ignis, hands clasped behind his back. "He wouldn't even go to sleep until you guys agreed to take potions, too."

Noctis and Gladio exchanged a glance, both realizing that what Prompto said was true. Noctis gazed down at his sleeping friend, warmth spreading through his chest.

He had good friends, the best. They were his brothers. Insomnia had fallen, but all was not lost. As long as he had his brothers, there was hope.

Ignis

Light awakened him, soft, glorious light, and from somewhere nearby, laughter, a familiar laugh.

Ignis opened his eyes and reached to push his glasses up his nose. Where were his glasses?

Then he remembered, closing his eyes and frowning at the memory-the cave, falling into darkness, fighting, water. That explained the pain in his side and at his middle. At least it was a dull pain now. He wondered if Noctis and Gladio had treated their own wounds as solicitously as he would have treated them.

He sucked in a deep breath-how satisfying that that was possible now-and sat up on his elbows. His ribs and abdomen twinged uncomfortably, but nothing shifted, and nothing seemed to be bleeding. He looked down to see that he was wearing a clean shirt, free of bloodstains. It was opened to reveal fresh bandages.

"Good morning, sleepyhead." Someone blocked the light filtering through the opening of the tent.

Ignis sat up with as much dignity as he could muster. "Good morning, Noct. How long has it been day?"

Noctis shrugged and sat cross legged on the floor of the tent. "Couple of hours." He yawned and stretched. "I still feel sleepy."

"Could be even later than noon, then," Ignis remarked dryly.

Noctis smiled. "I can see you're feeling better."

"Much." Ignis cocked an eyebrow. "Is that Ebony I smell brewing?"

"Sure is. And Gladio went to the nearest diner to get breakfast."

"You let him go alone?" Ignis clucked his tongue. "You're sure he hasn't eaten it all himself?"

"Now that you mention it-"

There was a burst of laughter from outside the tent, followed by Prompto yelling, "You can't catch me!" and Gladio replying, "You know I can!"

"What the devil are they getting into now?" Ignis rubbed at his sore elbow.

"Who knows?" Noctis stood. "Rest as long as you like."

"I think I'm done resting for a while, thank you." Ignis pushed himself up to his knees, then got one foot on the ground. He knelt on one knee for a moment at Noctis's feet, gathering his strength, ribs aching.

"Here, let me-"

"No, no. Don't worry yourself, Noct."

"Ha. That's funny coming from you." Noctis crossed his arms and shook his head.

Ignis climbed to his feet and straightened, wincing, winded from even that slight exertion, but he was standing, and it was a new day, and everyone was alright.

He enjoyed a cup of Ebony and breakfast with his friends, assuring them that he could copy the recipe behind the meal Gladio had purchased.

"I think we should all take it easy today," Noctis said as they sank back in their camp chairs, stomachs full.

"Is that a royal command?" Gladio teased.

"Yep. It sure is."

"Alright!" Prompto whipped out his phone. "Time for an epic session of King's Knight!"

"I'll join you at that," Noctis volunteered.

"Not fishing today?" Gladio asked, crossing his arms.

"Nah, not today. Last time we almost got killed!"

Gladio chuckled. "Has that ever stopped us from trying anything again?"

As Noctis and Prompto played their video game together, Gladio scooted his chair closer to Ignis's.

"How are you holding up?" he asked.

"Perfectly well, thank you. And you?"

"Fine."

They were quiet for several moments, Ignis jotting down ideas for a new recipe, Gladio losing himself in his current favorite novel.

Gladio broke the silence first, peering at Noctis and Prompto over the cover of his book. "This won't be the last close call we'll have, will it?"

It was more of a rhetorical question, he suspected, but Ignis answered anyway. "No. It will not."

"You up for it?" Gladio asked casually.

Ignis lifted his chin and looked across the camp to where Noctis and Prompto laughed and chattered, carefree and innocent. He answered with surety. "Yes. I am ready for whatever may come."

**So there you have it! My first FFXV fic! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. These guys are super fun to torment... I mean write. ;)**

**I am currently about halfway finished with writing my next FFXV fanfic, featuring more danger, whump, and bromance! Let me know if you would like for me to contact you when I start posting it, or you can simply follow me or keep an eye out for my posts.**

**Thank you so much for following me on this journey!**


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